Gunnison/Crested Butte Colorado Family Activity
Guide Winter 2006
Kid Friendly Activities in the Valley
Outdoor Activities
Nordic Skiing Gunnison
W Mountain Trailhead. These great flat trails are free, rated easy and are groomed for classic and skate skiing. Snowshoes are welcome to walk outside of the groomed ski tracks. Take Hwy. 50 east to Teller St., go south on Teller St. to San Juan Ave. The trailhead is to the left. Please respect signs and stay on trails.
Jorgensen Park Trails. Free trails, groomed classic and skate skiing, flat and short, make them perfect for beginners. Take Hwy. 50 east to the ice rink. Trails begin at the warming hut.
Western State College Practice Field Trails. These trails are free and for beginners to intermediates. Take Main St. (Hwy. 135) north to Denver St., go east to Colorado St., north to Escalante Dr., and east to the WSC pool parking lot. Park here and cross Escalante to the trailheads.
Hartman Rocks. This beautiful area in rural Gunnison offers easy to difficult trails groomed for classic and skate skiing. Beginners and intermediates should stick to the lower trails. Drive west on Hwy. 50 to County Rd. 38 (Gold Basin Rd.), then south two miles to the Hartman Rocks Trailhead on your right.
Sage Mountain School photo. © 2006
Click for larger photo.
Nordic Skiing Crested Butte
For a map of Nordic trails in the Crested Butte area, visit the CB Nordic Center on the corner of 2nd and Whiterock. Lessons offered include Kids Never Ever Package, Learn to Ski Package, and Learn to Skate Ski for Free. Call 970-349-1707 by the Tuesday before to reserve your spot.
Sledding Hills
Grab your sleds and head over to the WSC sledding hill (follow directions
in Nordic section to the WSC Practice Field Trails). In Crested Butte,
the Big Mine Park (located on the corner of 3rd and Whiterock) has a sledding
hill behind the skate park. Both are sure to provide plenty of family
fun. The CBNC rents sleds for $5 a day and helmets are strongly recommended.
CBMR has two tubing hills, one open during the day at the top of Painter
Boy and another at the base of the Red Lady Express which opens after
the lifts close. Remember, there is no sledding permitted at the Ski Area.
Skiing and Snowboarding
Crested Butte Mountain Resort. Make sure the little ones pick up a Kids Trail Map so they can maneuver whatever slopes suit their abilities on their way over to the Kids Park at the top of Painter Boy to hit the mini halfpipe, rails, tabletops, and score big air on the beginner hits. Keep your eyes open for Bubba and Betty Bear. When you need to warm your nose and toes, head into the CB Zone (open 7 days a week from 11 a.m -9 p.m. in the Treasury Center) for some pizza, foosball, video games and movies on the big screen TV. Call Kids World at 970-349-2259 to sign up for a kids' night out. Activities include torchlight parade and pizza party on Wednesdays, tubing and pizza on Thursdays and Saturdays, and tubing, torchlight parade, and pizza on Fridays. For more family-friendly information, visit www.skicb.com and click on The Mountain and then click on Just for Kids.
Cranor Hill Ski Area. Gunnison's downhill ski area offers beginner and intermediate terrain serviced by one Poma Lift when snow permits. Follow Hwy. 135 north one-half mile to County Rd. 10, take a right and go three miles to Cranor hill. Call 970-641-8060 for more information.
Monarch Ski Area. "Lose the crowds, not your family!" Located on Monarch Pass (Hwy. 50), this resort offers family-friendly terrain perfect for children and beginners, as well as backcountry runs. The very short walking distance from the parking lot to the lifts makes Monarch perfect for the little ones. Visit www.skimonarch.com for more information.
Snowshoeing
The old saying, "If you can walk, you can snowshoe" is certainly true. It just depends upon whether you want to snowshoe to a mountain peak, down a snow-packed county road, a mountain trail, or groomed flat trails. For a peaceful change of pace, give it a try. Snowshoe rentals are available at most sporting good stores.
Snowshoeing Gunnison. A few trails that allow snowshoeing in Gunnison are Hartman Rocks, Mill Creek Trailhead and the W Mountain Trailhead (directions in Nordic Section). Please stay outside the groomed ski tracks. Blue Mesa Reservoir is perfect for off-trail exploring with a beautiful backdrop.
Snowshoeing Crested Butte. The CB Peanut Lake Trail is perfect for beginners and the Gothic Mountain Trail is a great out-and-back. CBMR offers snowshoeing tours at the ski resort. Tipi Lunch Tours offered by the CBNC give a fun go-at-your-own-pace small group environment as you venture to their "Magic Meadows Tipi." Meet Wednesdays at 11 a.m. at the CBNC. Fees are $50 for children and $60 for adults.
Snowmobiling
Zoom through the Gunnison National Forest covering more ground than you ever thought possible on the latest SkiDoo sled. Helmets, suits and boot rentals are available for rentals. Children can ride in the front or back of mom's or dad's sled and teens 16 and up with a valid driver's license can drive their own. Snowmobiling doesn't have to be "extreme." There are many easy snow-packed roads and trails that are perfect for that family Sunday drive. Call one of the many snowmobile companies, such as Burt Rentals Snowmobiles at 970-349-2441, to make a reservation. Small group tours and private tours are available. CB Snowmobiles, 970-209-0109, offers unguided rentals for all levels.
Ice Skating
Gunnison's Packman Pond offers three ice rinks free of charge for leisure, figure skating and hockey. Skate rentals are available at the warming hut for a small fee. Call 970-641-8060 for information on open skate times and hockey game schedules.
Crested Butte's Big Mine Ice Rink located at the Nordic Center in Big Mine Park is open to the public from early December through late February, weather permitting. Lessons are available through the CB Rec Dept. Call 970-349-5338 for lesson information. For open skate times call the Ice Line at 970-349-0974. Crested Butte South also has an ice rink available to the public between hockey games and lessons.
Hockey
For those of you who like to watch, call the Ice Line at 970-349-0974 or the Gunnison Rec Center at 970-641-8060 for game times. Head to the Big Mine Ice Rink in Crested Butte or the Ice Rink in Gunnison and get ready to ring those cow bells!
Bald Eagle Watching
Blue Mesa Reservoir and the bank of the Gunnison River (near Roaring Judy Fish Hatchery off Hwy. 135) are great spots to view these beautiful birds as they fish for their dinner, and warm their feathers on the tops of spruce and cottonwood trees growing on the water's edge. Bighorn Sheep can sometimes be seen a short drive up County Rd. 742 (in Almont) in Taylor Canyon. Watch for signs indicating "Bighorn Sheep Viewing Area."
Mountain Kids Magazine, LLC, P.O. Box 1442,
Crested Butte, CO 81224